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Avoiding Poison Plant Allergy

First comes the itching, then
a red rash, and then blisters.
These symptoms of poison ivy,
poison oak, and poison sumac can start
from a few hours to several days after
exposure to the plant oil found in the
sap of these poisonous plants.

Poison Ivy
Found throughout the
United States except Alaska, Hawaii,
and parts of the West Coast, poison ivy
can grow as a vine or shrub. Each leaf
has three glossy leaflets, with smooth
or toothed edges. Leaves are reddish
in spring, green in summer, and yellow,
orange, or red in fall, and the plants may
have white berries.

Poison Oak
It grows as a low shrub
in the eastern United States, and in tall
clumps or long vines on the Pacific
Coast. Poison oak has fuzzy green
leaves in clusters of three that are lobed
or deeply toothed with rounded tips
and may have yellow-white berries.

Poison Sumac
It grows as a tall
shrub or small tree in bogs or swamps in
the Northeast, Midwest, and parts of the
Southeast. Each leaf has clusters of 7 to
13 smooth-edged leaflets. The leaves are
orange in spring, green in summer, and
yellow, orange, or red in fall, and the
plant may have yellow-white berries.

Not Contagious
Poison ivy and
other poison plant rashes can’t be spread
from person to person. But it is possible
to pick up the rash from plant oil that
may have stuck to clothing, pets, garden
tools, and other items that have come
in contact with these plants. The plant
oil lingers (sometimes for years) on
virtually any surface until it’s washed
off with water or rubbing alcohol.

The plant oil lingers (sometimes
for years) on virtually any
surface until it’s washed
off with water or
rubbing alcohol.

The rash will only occur where the
plant oil has touched the skin, so a person
with poison ivy can’t spread it on
the body by scratching. It may seem
like the rash is spreading if it appears
over time instead of all at once. But
this is either because the plant oil is
absorbed at different rates in different
parts of the body or because of repeated
exposure to contaminated objects or
plant oil trapped under the fingernails.
Even if blisters break, the fluid in the
blisters is not plant oil and cannot further
spread the rash.

Tips for Prevention
Learn what
poison ivy, oak, and sumac plants look
like so you can avoid them. Wash your
garden tools and gloves regularly. If
you think you may be working around
poison ivy, wear long sleeves, long
pants tucked into boots, and gloves.
Wash your pet if it may have brushed
up against poison ivy, oak, or sumac.
Use pet shampoo and water while wearing
rubber gloves, such as dishwashing
gloves. Most pets are not sensitive to
poison ivy, but the oil can stick to their
fur and cause a reaction in someone
who pets them.

Wash your skin in cool water as
soon as possible if you come in contact
with a poisonous plant. The sooner
you cleanse the skin, the greater the
chance that you can remove the plant
oil or help prevent further spread.
Use the topical product “Ivy Block”
if you know you will come into contact
with the poisonous plants. This
FDA-approved product is available
over the counter.

Tips for Treatment
Don’t scratch
the blisters. Bacteria from under your
fingernails can get into the blisters and
cause an infection. The rash, blisters,
and itch normally disappear in several
weeks without any treatment. But
you can relieve the itch by using wet
compresses or soaking in cool water,
applying over-the-counter topical
corticosteroid preparations or taking
prescription oral corticosteroids, and
applying topical over-the-counter skin
protectants, such as calamine, labeled
to dry oozing and weeping or to relieve
itching and irritation caused
by poison ivy, poison oak, and poison
sumac.

See a doctor if you have a temperature
over 100° F, if there is pus, soft
yellow scabs, or tenderness on the rash,
if the itching gets worse or keeps you
awake at night, if the rash spreads to
your eyes, mouth, genital area, or covers
more than one-fourth of your skin
area, or if the rash is not improving
within a few days.